ai4bharat/Pralekha huggingface dataset:
Ministry of Railways
CCTV Cameras in Indian Railways
Closed Circuit Television  Cameras have been provided at 686 stations. Online monitoring through Close Circuit Television  cameras is done at Passenger Reservation centre as well as other areas of major railway stations. If any unlawful/suspicious activity is observed, immediate action is taken. Presently prevention of entry of persons is not done by using CCTV monitoring. However, surveillance on persons indulging in suspicious /objectionable activities is maintained and intervention is made as and when the need arises.
This information was given by the Minister of Railways, Commerce & Industry and Consumer Affairs, Food & Public Distribution, Shri Piyush Goyal in a written reply to a question in Lok Sabha today.
Ministry of Road Transport & Highways
NHAI Uses Steel Slag in Highway Construction on Trial Basis
In line with Government’s ‘Waste to Wealth’ mission and encouraging environmentally sustainable National Highways construction, trial use of ‘Steel Slag’ in road construction has been initiated by NHAI. This initiative will help to address challenge of shortage of material used in development of the National Highways, and could replace natural aggregates such as sand, gravel, or crushed stone with the waste material from the steel industry.
To construct India’s first Pavement Quality Concrete  with steel slag, NHAI started trials for its possible use in road construction. The authority permitted Central Road Research Institute  to construct one km long trial patch in Raigarh district for PQC of Panvel – Indapur section of NH 66 near Mumbai where 100% natural aggregates were replaced by steel slag derived aggregates. The results from the trial have been encouraging.
NHAI has been encouraging the innovative use of new alternative material like use of plastic waste, building & construction waste etc. and the road constructed by use of steel slag is an example of converting waste into wealth. Use of such material in road construction shall make construction more economical and will promote circular economy and resource efficiency.
President's Secretariat
President of India pays floral tributes to Giani Zail Singh on his birth anniversary
The President of India, Shri Ram Nath Kovind, paid floral tributes to Giani Zail Singh, former President of India, on his birth anniversary at Rashtrapati Bhavan today . The President, family members of Giani Zail Singh as well as officers and staff of the President’s Secretariat paid respects before his portrait.
Ministry of Education
Spiking of Marks
A meeting to review the Policy of Moderation of marks to avoid spiking of marks was conveyed by the Secretary , in Ministry of Human Resource Development, on 24th April, 2017 with State Education Secretaries and Chairman of State Education Boards and Central Board of Secondary Education . All State Boards decided to constitute Inter Board Working Group  comprising of Chairman, Board of Gujarat, Jammu & Kashmir, Kerala, Telengana, Chhattisgarh, Manipur, ICSE with Chairman, CBSE as the Convener of the IBWG.
The following decisions in regard to moderation of marks for upward revision/spiking of marks have been taken unanimously:
 All State Boards decided to stop awarding moderation of marks for upward revision /spiking of marks from the current year except Kerala Board and subject to amendment in the State regulations, if required. However, Kerala Board conveyed to do away with moderation from the next year.
 All State Boards decided to continue with the policy of Grace Marks for lower level performance to improve the pass percentage but the policy should be placed on Board’s website for transparency. It was also decided to show grace marks distinctly in the Marks Sheet.
All State Boards placed on record the appreciation for efforts of Government of India and State Governments to initiate this process of consultation to bring uniformity in evaluation and improve quality of education in the country.
This information was given by the Minister of State , Shri Upendra Kushwaha today in a written reply to a Lok Sabha question.
Ministry of Information & Broadcasting
Satyajit Ray Film and Television Institute holds 10th convocation on Sunday, May 2, 2021.
Diploma were awarded to 13th batch of film wing, 1st batch of animation and Electronic & Digital Media students in virtual convocation ceremony.
Satyajit Ray Film and Television Institute organized the virtual convocation ceremony on Sunday, May 2, 2021. The day also marks the beginning of the yearlong birth centenary celebration of the film maestro Sh. Satyajit Ray. “This day is very significant to us as Satyajit Ray Film and Television Institute presents the nation with the bunch of new filmmakers”, says Professor Amaresh Chakrabarti, Director In-Charge of the Institute.
The graduates of thirteenth batch of the Film Wing, the first batch of the Electronic and Digital Media wing and the first batch of the Animation Cinema gets their Post Graduate Diploma Certificate after pursuing different specializations and successfully completed their first films.
The simplicity and directness in Ray’s filmmaking style is also perceived in the early ventures of these young filmmakers. Commissioned and produced by the Institute, a total number of twenty-one dissertation films and their student crew receives honors, comprising six films from Animation Cinema, five films from Electronic and Digital Media Wing and ten films from the film wing. Amongst this wide spectrum of narratives, Like a Midnight Dream , a dissertation film by Sharan Venugopal, is recently awarded Best Film on Family Values in the 67th National Film Awards by Directorate of Film Festivals, Government of India.
The Chief Guest of the ceremony, Ms. Aparna Sen, an eminent actor, filmmaker and Padma Shri awardee, congratulates the graduates for completion of their formal education in various disciplines of cinema and allied audiovisual medium.
In the valedictory speech, She also shared her memories with Ray, “it is doubly auspicious as the day marks the beginning of the centenary celebrations of the master auteur.” Satyajit Ray had been my mentor and it was a privilege to work in his films, she continues. “After reading my first script that I wrote, Ray pushed me to write to Sashi Kapoor and approach him as a producer”. Ms. Sen made her cinematic debut as an actor in Ray’s Three Daughters .
Distinguished Professors and Industry Experts who conducted workshops and inter-disciplinary sessions, congratulates 83 graduating students. Prasenjit Ganguly , Hitendra Ghosh , Kedarnath Awati , Umesh Vinayak Kulkarni , Jawhar Sircar  and Anil Mehta  applaud for their first venture and wishes luck for their future adventures and journeys.
Named after the legendary film maestro Satyajit Ray, the Institute has emerged as a center of excellence which offers post-graduate program in Cinematic and television studies. Satyajit Ray, a genuine artist, made Indian cinema worth of serious attention for the first time in its history. With cinema as a language that tales the tale of life in the most neo-realistic manner, the graduates of the Satyajit Ray Film and Television Institute are encouraged to form their own worldview and portray the same on to the screen.
Ministry of Steel
Hindi Advisory Committee of Ministry of Steel Reviews the Progress; Meeting held in Madurai
Shri Ram Chandra Prasad Singh Presents “Ispat Rajbhasha Sammaan” Awards
The meeting of Hindi Advisory Committee of the Ministry of Steel was held last evening i.e. 03rd March, 2022 at Madurai, Tamil Nadu under the chairmanship of the Union Minister of Steel, Shri Ram Chandra Prasad Singh. The Vice Chairman of the meeting, the Minister of State for Steel and Rural Development, Shri Faggan Singh Kulaste also graced the occasion.
The Committee reviewed the progress of Hindi in detail and appreciated the efforts being made by the Ministry for promoting the progressive use of Hindi in official work. The Minister of Steel welcomed the suggestions given by the members for promoting the use of Hindi in the Ministry and its Undertakings. Shri Ram Chandra Prasad Singh assured the members for taking appropriate and prompt action on their constructive suggestions. Minister of State for Steel apprised the members about the status of usage of Hindi in the Ministry and its Undertakings.
Earlier, Additional Secretary , Smt. Ruchika Chaudhry Govil welcomed the Committee. The meeting was being held after a period of 3 years. The disruption was due to the prevailing pandemic in the country. Deputy Director , Smt. Aastha Jain made Power Point Presentation on effective implementation of Hindi. CMDs of each of the 8 PSUs also presented their achievements in using and propagating the use of Hindi.
On this occasion, Shri Ram Chandra Prasad Singh awarded “Ispat Rajbhasha Sammaan” awards and Commendation Certificates for the year 2018-19, 2019-20 and 2020-21 to the Undertakings for their excellent performance in the usage of Official Language Rajbhasha.
The meeting concluded with a vote of thanks to the Chair as well as to the Members.
Ministry of Information & Broadcasting
1.5 lakh free Dish to be distributed in border areas and far flung areas
Union Secretary of Ministry of I&B visits far flung areas of Kangan to assess outreach of free Dish service
Beneficiaries of Free DD Dish Service express happiness on getting the Service
Ganderbal, April 12: Government of India will provide free Doordarshan Dish TV facilities to residents of far flung areas of Jammu and Kashmir. This was stated by Secretary Information and Broadcasting  Sh. Apurva Chandra during a visit to Kangan Sub Division of J&K to assess outreach of DD Free Dish in the area.
To achieve the goal of reaching out to people living in far-flung and border areas through the platform of DD Free Dish, Union Secretary said that the Government has proposed to distribute 1.5 lakh free Dish in such areas where cable service is not available for which tendering is under process and will be completed soon.
During the visit, Union Secretary was accompanied by Principal Director General News, All India Radio, N. V. Reddy, Director General, Doordarshan, Mayank Agrawal, Additional Director General, Press Information Bureau Srinagar, Rajinder Chaudhry, Deputy Director News DDK Srinagar, Qazi Salman, and the officers of the district administration.
Sh. Chandra underlined the importance of the free of cost service to the masses. He said that the service is being distributed in far flung areas of Kashmir and its ambit will be increased in the times to come. The Union Secretary complemented Doordarshan Kendra Srinagar for performing its duties efficiently despite many challenges in the past. He said that the Kendra is aptly representing the local culture and traditions through its programmes reaching the people with authentic information.
The Union I&B Secretary also interacted with the people using DD Free Dish at Margund Kangan who shared their feedback about the programmes available on various channels especially DD Kashir. They thanked the government for providing free Dish Service which has become vital in developing and promoting regional languages and providing news and entertainment via a wide range of channels.
One of the beneficiaries, Abdul Rashid Sheikh while appreciating the DD said that the scheme will help in keeping the people updated about different developmental initiatives and also informed about the local as well as national events of importance.
DD Free Dish is the only Free-to-Air Direct-to-Home  service provided by Doordarshan. The service is owned and operated by Public Service Broadcaster Prasar Bharati. It was launched in December, 2004. The service has no monthly subscription fee from the viewers and is very affordable as it requires only a small one time investment of about Rs. 2000/- for purchasing of Set-to-Box  and small sized Dish Antenna with accessories. The unique free to air model has made DD Free Dish the largest DTH platform.
Vice President's Secretariat
Urgent need to bridge the skill gap in youth: Vice President
Vice President calls upon leaders in industry and social sector to supplement government efforts in upskilling youth
‘Impart skills in tune with the new & emerging market demands’: Vice President
Shri Naidu interacts with trainees at GMR Varalakshmi Foundation in Hyderabad
The Vice President, Shri M. Venkaiah Naidu today stressed the urgent need to bridge the skill gap in the youth to make them competent for the new market demands and to improve the productivity of our workforce. ‘This is critical to accelerate India’s economy in the coming years,’ he said.
In this regard, Shri Naidu called upon the leaders in the industry and social sector to supplement the efforts of the government in training and skill development such as the Kaushal Vikas Yojana, Udaan, etc. He urged the industry to take this up as a ‘noble social mission’. He appreciated the efforts of Indian companies who have been imparting such vocational training through their corporate social responsibility and generating sustainable livelihoods for many poor people. He also noted the crucial role of skilling in uplifting and empowering women financially and socially.
Visiting the GMR Varalakshmi Foundation's Centre for Empowerment and Livelihoods in Hyderabad, Shri Naidu interacted with the staff and the participants undergoing training at the centre. He suggested that skill up-gradation must also match the emerging demands of the 21st century in order to remain competitive in the job market. He advised the trainees to be abreast with the latest technological developments.
Later, the Vice President also visited GMR Chinmaya Vidyalaya and interacted with the teachers and students. The founder-chairman of GMR Group, Grandhi Mallikarjuna Rao, officials and staff of the GMR Varalakshmi Foundation and others were present during the visit.
Ministry of Micro,Small & Medium Enterprises
Development in MSME Sector
As a measure to help the MSMEs grow, the Government, vide notification no.S.O. 2119  dated 26.06.2020, has notified composite criteria of classification of MSMEs based on investment in plant and machinery or equipment and turnover of the enterprise. The new criteria is effective from 1.7.2020. However, to provide hassle free transition from old system of Udyog Aadhaar Memorandum to Udyam Registration, 31.03.2021 has been fixed as deadline. The New criteria provides that the turnover with respect to exports will not be counted in the limits of turnover for any category of MSME units whether micro, small or medium. There is no difference between manufacturing and service sector enterprises. The actual figures for Turnover with different investment limits depend upon a variety of socio-economic factors such as demand from consumers, Inflation, availability of labour and raw materials, price fluctuations, etc., in different cases. There is no uniform investment / turnover ratio. The new composite criteria is expected to bring about many benefits. This will also help in attracting investments and creating more jobs in the MSME sector. Moreover, the Udyam registration portal developed by this Ministry has facilitated MSMEs by providing the MSMEs to link themselves with  GeM portal for ensuring their participation in Government procurements,  linkages with TReDS platform for helping the MSEs in realizing their delayed payments  In case of change in status as a result of re classification due to changes in investment or turnover, the benefit associated with the status would be effective from 1st April of the financial year following the year in which such change took place.
This information was given by Shri Pratap Chandra Sarangi, Minister of State for Micro, Small and Medium Enterprises in written reply to a question in Lok Sabha today.
Prime Minister's Office
PM congratulates Falguni Shah on winning award for Best Children’s Music Album at Grammys
The Prime Minister, Shri Narendra Modi has congratulated Falguni Shah on winning the award for the Best Children’s Music Album at the Grammys.
In a tweet, the Prime Minister said;
"Congratulations to Falguni Shah on winning the award for the Best Children’s Music Album at the Grammys. Wishing her the very best for her future endeavours."
Cabinet
Cabinet approves signing of Framework of Understanding between India and Bangladesh on Cooperation in the hydrocarbon sector
Cabinet approves signing of Framework of Understanding between India and Bangladesh on Cooperation in the hydrocarbon sector
The Union Cabinet chaired by the Prime Minister Shri Narendra Modi has approved signing of Framework of Understanding  on Cooperation in the Hydrocarbon Sector with Bangladesh.
The objective of the proposed FoU is to establish a cooperative institutional framework mechanism to facilitate and enhance India-Bangladesh bilateral cooperation in the hydrocarbon sector on the basis of equality and mutual benefit.
The FoU promotes bilateral cooperation at the sub-regional and regional levels. It will provide impetus to development and enable the two countries to realize their developmental aspirations, shared destiny and common vision of a peaceful and prosperous South Asia.
The proposed FoU is non-binding in nature and will be valid for five years.
Ministry of Road Transport & Highways
NHAI invites Bids for Development of 75 Wayside Amenities
Plans to develop Over 600 Wayside Amenities by 2025
To improve commuting experience on National Highways, NHAI will develop Wayside Amenities  at more than 600 locations on National Highways and Expressways by FY 2024-25. Wayside Amenities will be developed every 40-60 km of current and upcoming National Highways and Expressways.
The amenities will include numerous facilities for passengers such as Fuel Station, Electric Charging Facilities, Food Court, Retail Shops, Bank ATM, Children Play Area, Medical Clinic, Childcare room, Toilets with shower facility, Vehicle repair facility, Driver Dormitory, Village Hatt for promotion of local handicrafts etc.
NHAI has already awarded 160 wayside amenities for development, out of about 150 have been awarded in last two years. Another 150 wayside amenities are planned to be awarded in the next financial year, which includes Greenfield corridors like Amritsar-Bathinda - Jamnagar Corridor, Delhi - Mumbai Expressway and Delhi-Amritsar-Katra Expressway. At present, 75 Wayside Amenities sites across multiple Brownfield and Greenfield Corridors are open for bidding at www.etenders.gov.in These sites are spread across eight states which include 27 in Rajasthan, 18 in Madhya Pradesh, 9 in J&K and 3 in Himachal Pradesh.
These wayside amenities will not only go a long way in making highway travel more convenient for commuters but will also provide adequate facilities for rest and refreshment to Highway users.
MJPS
(Visitor Counter : 2733
Ministry of Commerce & Industry
Jackfruits from Tripura exported to London
In a major step towards harnessing exports potential of agricultural and processed food products from north-eastern region, a shipment of 1.2 metric tonne  of fresh jackfruit was today exported from Tripura to London.
Jackfruits were sourced from the Tripura based Krishi Sanyoga Agro Producer Company Ltd. The consignment was packed at APEDA assisted pack-house facility of Salt Range Supply Chain Solution Ltd and exported by Kiega EXIM Pvt Ltd.
This was the first APEDA assisted pack house for exports to European Union, which was approved in May 2021. APEDA regularly carries out promotional activities to bring the North- Eastern states on the export map of India.
The virtual event to send the jackfruit shipment to London was attended by officials including Dr M Angamuthu, Chairman, APEDA and CK Jamatia, Secretary, Agriculture, Government of Tripura and other senior officials.
Recently, the first consignment of ‘red rice’ was sent to the USA from Assam. Iron rich ‘red rice’ is grown in Brahmaputra valley of Assam, without the use of any chemical fertilizer. The rice variety is referred as ‘Bao-dhaan’, which is an integral part of the Assamese food.
APEDA undertakes market promotion activities for evolving structured marketing strategies for export of food products, market intelligence for taking informed decisions, international exposure, skill development, capacity building and high-quality packaging.
Promoting products of north-eastern region is APEDA’s thrust areas of work. APEDA would continue to focus on north eastern region both in terms of capacity building, quality up gradation, infrastructure development. Linking buyers to farmer’s, strengthening entire supply chain of agricultural produce from the north-eastern region would bring in dividend.
Cabinet
Cabinet approves creation of one post of Deputy Comptroller and Auditor General in the office of Comptroller and Auditor General of India
The Union Cabinet, chaired by the Prime Minister Shri Narendra Modi, has given its approval to create one post of Deputy Comptroller & Auditor General  in Pay Level-17  in the Office of the Comptroller & Auditor General of India.
The Deputy Comptroller & Auditor General shall oversee the coordination among State Audits, audit of telecommunication and to coordinate the various Information Systems  initiatives within the Indian Audit & Accounts Department .
Expenditure on account of creation of this post will be Rs.21 Lakh .
Ministry of Minority Affairs
Waqf Properties under Encroachment
As per provisions of Section 32 of the Waqf Act 1995 as amended, general superintendence of all Waqf properties in a State is vested with the State Waqf Board  and the Waqf Board is empowered to manage the Waqf property. Further, as per Section 54 and 55 of the Waqf Act, Chief Executive Officer of SWB has power to take legal action against unauthorized occupation and encroachment of Waqf properties. Complaints related to encroachment of Waqf properties which are usually received in this Ministry are hence forwarded to the concerned SWBs for taking appropriate action as per the provisions of Waqf Act 1995 as amended.
Further, Ministry of Minority Affairs implements Qaumi Waqf Board Taraqqiati Scheme  for better administration of Waqf properties and to safeguard and prevent encroachment of Waqf properties. Under QWBTS financial assistance is provided to SWBs towards computerization & digitization of records of Waqf properties, GIS Mapping of Waqf properties, maintenance of Centralized Computing Facility , Enterprise Resource Planning Solution  and also for deployment of manpower viz. Retired Tehsildars/Retired Patwaris as a Mutation Assistants to complete the process of mutation of un-mutated waqf properties, GIS-Digitization supervisor, Assistant Programmer, Mutawalli Change Support Assistant, Mutawalli Return Support Assistant, Leasing Support Assistant, Litigation Tracking Support Assistant, Zonal Waqf Officers, Survey Assistant and Data Entry Operator. So far records of 8,02,538 immovable Waqf properties have been entered in WAMSI Registration Module and GIS Mapping of 2,54,533 Waqf properties have been done. For the first time 3,32,344 records of Waqf estates have been digitized.
This information was given by the Union Minister for Minority Affairs Shri Mukhtar Abbas Naqvi in a written reply in the Lok Sabha today.